Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery dollars paid out to minstrel group

Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery dollars paid out to minstrel group

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Minstrels carry out in Athlone on two January 2017. Archive Image: Ashraf Hendricks

A report by attorneys Dabishi Nthambeleni into a R27.3-million grant because of the Countrywide Lotteries Fee to your Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) for just a minstrels museum has discovered no evidence that a museum ever existed.
The investigators located which the CTMCA did not make use of the R5-million allotted to get or establish a museum.
Additionally they observed that the CTMCA only bought land value R1.seven-million, not R5-million as allotted.
They uncovered the CTMCA used funds from your Lottery to get workshop devices from one of its personal directors, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how countless rand granted towards the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) with the National Lotteries Fee (NLC) to build a museum to celebrate town’s prosperous minstrel background went astray. The museum was by no means established.

The small print of the abuse of a lot of rands of Lottery funds for your museum that in no way was are disclosed in an investigative report commissioned with the NLC in 2021.

The museum grant was part of a lot more than R64-million in Lottery cash allotted into the CTMCA in between 2003 and 2017.

The initial Section of the investigation, by legislation agency Dabishi Nthambeleni, was executed amongst September 2020 and January 2021 and focused on a R27.3-million grant into the CTMCA in 2014, which bundled funding for that museum. The permitted funds for your museum was more than R12.8-million, with R5-million of that allotted for the building to accommodate the museum.

Study the report (PDF, 7MB)

The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to research the acquisition of a constructing with the museum and whether the museum “in fact existed”.

The firm was also instructed to investigate

the purchase with Lottery money of two cars – a sixty-seater bus and a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
numerous machines “obtained for the production with the costumes and hats” for that minstrels carnival, for R5.4-million.
At time, convicted felony Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director with the CTMCA. He was appointed a director in the CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing as two of numerous administrators of your organisation. Stemmet was reappointed for a director in Could 2021.

The investigation followed considerable reporting by GroundUp in regards to the a lot of rands of Lottery funding allocated on the CTMCA (see below, in this article and below) and the best way the resources possibly served finance the ANC’s 2014 election marketing campaign inside the Western Cape, led by at enough time by Marius Fransman.



The setting up on the ideal was the intended internet site of your minstrels’ museum, in the course of an industrial location in Primrose Park, Cape City. Picture: Raymond Joseph

In reaction to a Parliamentary dilemma, previous NLC Commissioner Thabang Mampane outlined grants to 3 CTMCA “initiatives” - such as the museum - in between 2012 and 2015. All 3 projects had been done, she informed MPs.

Though the investigators uncovered no evidence that a museum experienced at any time existed.

At first the museum was as a result of open in rented premises in Crete Road, Wetton. A photograph obtained by GroundUp in the supposed Wetton museum shows a coffee shop with some musical devices and minstrel costumes and collages of pics haphazardly hung within the partitions, plus a model ship on its plinth within a corner.

In its report, Dabishi Nthambeleni mentioned it absolutely was “not in a position” to confirm if a museum had ever operated from these premises.

Stemmet explained to the investigators the museum were moved as they could now not find the money for the lease of R100,000 a month. He said the CTMCA had obtained house for R1.seven-million in Schaapkraal for that museum, but couldn't get it rezoned, and were marketed for the same rate. Schaapkraal is in a very peri-urban place far from the town.

Because of this, the museum were moved to a brand new site in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet informed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But immediately after visiting the premises, that happen to be within an industrial space, the investigators said they doubted no matter if an appropriate museum existed there. Pics hooked up to your report exhibit a mishmash of randomly shown uniforms, musical instruments and assorted minstrel paraphernalia nailed into the wall, shown on tables and spread out on the ground, without any explanation.

“You will find there's nominal quantity of items for the museum [that] in no way stand for the a lot more than a hundred-yr heritage from the Cape Town Carnival, the investigators claimed, introducing that there was “no signage outside the premises indicating that they housed a museum and … normally, the museum won't look to become open to the public.”

The CTMCA experienced breached the grant settlement, Dabishi Nthambeleni pointed out, by going The situation with the museum to an alternate area without having notifying the NLC.



The Schaapkraal home, on which no museum was at any time designed. Photograph: Raymond Joseph

Buses
Stemmet told the investigators which the CTMCA had to maneuver from your rented Crete Highway premises since it experienced run up a R4-million credit card debt with the City of Cape Town and was afraid its products would be connected.

“Mainly because of the legal battles along with the debts, the organisation experienced to maneuver its property from 5 Crete Road to avoid the sheriff from attaching the house with the organisation,” Stemmet explained to the investigators.

Sedrick Soeker, The existing director of the CTMCA, told them which the two buses acquired with lottery cash ended up stored in the mystery area “hidden from the Sheriff”. Though the investigators claimed they have been unable to verify that any buses had ever been acquired.

Stemmet also confirmed that the buses had been concealed to prevent them getting seized. But when the investigators requested for being taken on the place wherever the buses had been stored, he advised them that “the operator of The trick place was not available to open up the premises for us”.

“The CTMCA couldn't provide evidence of payment for 2 vehicles that it allegedly obtained with grant revenue,” the investigators documented.

Soeker also advised them the Schaapkraal house had been sold because of the credit card debt.

“Mr Soeker defined that As outlined by his comprehension, as a result of financial debt owed to the City of Cape City, the CTMCA determined It might be ideal to market their [Schaapkraal] house … and also to also to cover the belongings from the CTMCA to steer clear of the sheriff from attaching the residence.”

JP Smith, Cape City’s mayco member for security and protection, has Beforehand told GroundUp the CTMCA “threw cash absent” on litigation with the town.

“On a yearly basis like clockwork, as we tactic the end from the calendar year, the CTMCA picks a lawful fight with the town, above permits or another thing. We under no circumstances initiate it. They retain throwing revenue away on vexatious litigation they shed and possess expenses awarded versus them. That is solely self-inflicted,” he stated.

Soeker informed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the principle purpose gamers on issues of Lottery funding ended up Stemmet and former CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who ended up in charge of all the admin, finances and functioning หวย หุ้น ช่อง 9 the CTMCA.” The investigators stated they had been struggling to Call Momberg.

Hats
In the course of their “investigation in loco” for the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “found many equipment, some in fantastic issue, some in lousy issue and several that appeared rusty and extremely outdated”. Stemmet advised the investigators that there was also an off-web site storage facility where “instruments plus some machinery” were held.

“We requested him to acquire us to the power but he was evasive to our ask for.”

Based on pics and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, Otherwise all, of the objects seem like equipment that was illegally removed from the CTMCA’s previous premises. Stemmet is experiencing rates for this removing.

According to the last progress report submitted towards the NLC through the CTMCA, the machinery was bought from Martin-Conne Milliners, a business wherein Stemmet, his wife and his daughter were directors at some time.

The investigators located this “alarming”.

“In the CIPC search of Martin-Conne Milliners and the invoices submitted, we note the next alarming finding: Mr Stemmet himself is often a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered handle of the organization is 5 Crete Street, Wetton, Cape Town, a similar address on which the museum was meant to be developed and/or converted,” they noted.

An audit by accountants Kopano Incorporated, hooked up on the investigative report, recorded that the CTMCA was in the whole process of obtaining “machinery, plant and inventory” valued at R8.one-million from Stalph 164 CC, buying and selling as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was a detailed corporation of which Stemmet was one among the administrators.

As outlined by Dabishi Nthambeleni, the corporate has paid R1.2-million to be a deposit, which means R6.nine-million remains owed, although there is no payment date set for when this need to be compensated.

The Kopano audit and also the near link amongst the businesses “reveal to us that there is ‘foul Participate in’ linked to the purchase with the machinery of the museum workshop”, the investigators claimed inside the report.

“We discover that it's very possible that CTMCA utilized the funding with the NLC to ‘refund’ certainly one of its key administrators for the house at an increased overpriced rate than the actual cost and value of the home and/or machinery.”

Recommendations
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it was not able to determine how the grant into the CTMCA were expended.

“The truth is, a detailed report on how the funding in the NLC was utilized, could be not possible as the CTMCA doesn't have any receipts, or proof of payments to verify the amounts expended on Every single item it requested funding for. The interim report and remaining report on the CTMCA only connect invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.

The investigators identified which the NLC had not carried out a site check out before approving the grant. But this was not common exercise at some time and they identified no evidence of negligence by NLC staff.

At enough time, the NLC’s regulations didn't have to have funded organisations to post proof of payment with interim reviews, they pointed out. This intended the CTMCA was capable to receive a next tranche of funding without the need to present proof that it experienced applied the primary tranche for its intended intent.

Pursuing the appointment of a fresh board, commissioner and senior govt crew, the NLC has tightened up on these as well as other challenges.

Dabishi Nthambeleni advised that

the NLC drop any long term funding apps within the CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any members who have been involved with the grant be subjected into the NLC’s “delinquency” procedure;
the NLC open a criminal case of fraud with SAPS or the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC start the process of recovering the misappropriated funds.
But, instead of act around the report’s recommendations, the NLC – less than its past administration – chose to suppress it, as it experienced completed Using the previous stories into corruption it had commissioned.

GroundUp despatched questions to Stemmet and Soeker by means of SMS, and asked for e mail addresses to send the inquiries by email way too. But no reaction had been acquired at some time of publication.



The minstrel “museum” in Crete Road, Wetton. Photo: Raymond Joseph

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